I wiped away the many inappropriate and vulgar thoughts that filled my mind and tilted my head in his direction.
“What about you? You seem in pretty good shape.” Finally, I could speak in complete sentences, and without a stutter.
His eyes lit. “Every morning. Although in the city, it was on a treadmill. This morning has been a very nice change.”
I rolled my eyes. How long was he planning to keep this up?
“Right, well—”
My foot caught in one of the many potholes in the beat-up road and my body shot forward, arms flailing wildly. I knew what was coming, so I closed my eyes, scrunched my face, and waited for the impact.
Strong arms caught me around the waist, but it was too late to stop my one leg from giving out and skidding across the pavement, shredding the skin on my knee.
Logan’s grip never faltered, and he slowly helped me up to a sitting position.
“I’m fine,” I hissed, heat scorching my cheek. I was certain he was going to ask. I looked up, planning to deliver my best ‘Seriously, I’m fine,’ but the look of distress staring back at me left me frozen.
Pretending I wasn’t hurt when his eyes were filled with genuine concern was impossible.
Hesitantly, I pulled my gaze away to focus on my knee. It was covered with dirt and oozing blood. I had a feeling I’d be picking pebbles out of it when I got home.
“That looks bad.” He bent down to examine my wound; the muscles in his naked back flexed and glistened with a layer of sweat. He had to do more than simply jog in the morning to have a body like that.
His clean, masculine scent usurped my senses. He smelled exactly how I always imagined a real man was supposed to smell. Mark always sprayed on multiple layers of expensive cologne, masking his natural scent.
Completely mesmerized by his bronzed, taut skin, I didn’t see him pull out a sleek black bottle.
I winced, biting back a groan of pain when he began spraying the icy water over my wound. The liquid ran down my knee, dulling the searing pain.
“Thanks,” I mumbled, looking anywhere but into those captivating, hazy-blue eyes.
“You think you can walk back?” he asked, standing up. “You still have half a mile to go.”
“I’ll be fine.” The thought of limping the whole way was disheartening, but what other choice did I have?
The smug grin I’d seen earlier replaced his concerned expression, and I couldn’t help returning a smile when he reached out and pulled me to my feet.
I groaned as the pain ripped through my knee when the muscles pulled. My hands rubbed soothing circles around the area above the wound, but it did little to help.
“Hop on.”
I looked up and saw Logan bent down, facing away. He slanted his head back and smirked.
“Come on, I’ll give you a lift.” His brows rose and he motioned his head for me to get on his back.
“You can’t be serious!” I laughed nervously, waiting for him to stand back up laughing as well and telling me of course he was kidding.
“Get on, Cassandra.” His tone was new—not playful, or even serious. It was demanding, yet gentle.
“Um…that’s not really necessary,” I choked out, stunned. The thought of wrapping my sweaty body around him was unbearable.
“You’ll either get on my back, or I’ll throw you over my shoulder.” He stood and turned to face me, his expression giving nothing away. He was impossible to read.
I stiffened when I realized he wasn’t joking.
“I don’t—” My voice cracked, nervous laughter catching in my throat.
“All right, then, over the shoulder it is.”
Before I could say another word or attempt to run—not that I’d get very far—he had his arms around my waist and my body thrown over his shoulder. He could pass for a firefighter, but I didn’t need rescuing.
Panic set in as my eyes widened in shock. “Put me down!” I yelled, pounding my fists on his back as he began walking, clearly blocking me out. “I can walk!”
My mouth rested inches from his skin and his scent assaulted my nostrils at full force. Focus, Cassandra, focus!
Logan continued at a smooth, slow pace. He seemed to be enjoying himself too much to rush.
“You always this stubborn?” he asked, finally breaking the long silence.
“Pretty much,” I mumbled through gritted teeth. My body had fallen limp in his arms, slung over his shoulder like a piece of meat. If only he had a cave to drag me into and ravish me until I forgot all about this humiliating stunt.
Where the hell did that come from? There was something about this guy that was so enticing, and I knew that was a bad sign.
He chuckled once. “Thought so.”
When we reached my house, I sighed. Finally. He carried me up my driveway to my front porch.
I waited for him to set me down, but he didn’t move. He just stood there, thinking or something. My body stiffened. I didn’t like the idea of him thinking right then. I only wanted to run inside and slam the door in his face, no matter how much my body might disagree.
Looking back to see what he was doing, I gasped. He was blatantly staring at my ass that happened to be inches from his face. His searing breath hit the bare skin of my rear that peeked out from under my tiny shorts that were riding up once again.
“Put me down, you pig!” I yelled, smacking him on the back of his head.
He let out a deep, guttural laugh. His entire body pulsated, bouncing me up and down with the rhythm, before he finally put me down.
Once back on my feet, I straightened my shoulders, narrowing my eyes and pursing my lips.
“You should clean up that knee,” he said, ignoring my look of disdain. All amusement was gone from his voice, but his eyes still danced with delight. “Hate to see those sweet long legs get an infection.”
I rolled my eyes for the twentieth time that morning. What the hell was happening to me? I looked away and muttered, “Whatever. Thanks for the lift, I guess.”
He turned around and headed down the driveway without another word.
Inhaling a deep, much-needed breath unaccompanied by Logan’s delicious unfamiliar scent, I let it out just as I heard him call out.
“Anytime, sweetheart.”
I looked over to see him standing at the end of the drive, a thoughtful smirk on his lips.
Yeah, he was definitely behind me too long on my jog.
Never again. From now on, I’d run in the evening.
About the Author
Angela Graham is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author of the Harmony Series. She grew up hidden away in the aisles of her local public library where she fell in love with reading.
In 2012 she found her calling in the world of fiction. With a baby on her shoulder, she wrote for a year before deciding to try her hand at a novel.
Together with S.E. Hall, she has released six novels and two short story together.
Angela resides in Pittsburgh with her three crazy children, two awesome wiener dogs and supportive husband.
Stay Connected
Be sure to check out her website at www.loveangelagraham.com
Stay connected by signing up to receive monthly newsletters. Sign-up link: http://eepurl.com/WrIKX
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/angelagraham.author/
Angela Graham, Inferno (A Harmony Love Story)
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends